Dynamic behaviour of high-pressure natural-gas flow in pipelines

The aim of the present study is the numerical modelling of the dynamic behaviour of high-pressure natural-gas flow in pipelines. The numerical simulation was performed by solving the conservation equations, for one-dimensional compressible flow, using the Runge-Kutta discontinuous Galerkin method, with third-order approximation in space and time. The boundary conditions were imposed using a new weak formulation based on the characteristic variables. The occurrence of pressure oscillations in natural-gas pipelines was studied as a result of the compression wave originated by the rapid closure of downstream shut-off valves. The effect of the partial reflection of pressure waves was also analyzed in the transition between pipes of different cross-sectional areas.